Gonzales' Erica Atkins turns into a 'Bridezilla,' then Erica Brooks

It’s a big weekend for local fans of the We network reality series “Bridezillas,” which documents pre-nup behavioral atrocities so jaw-dropping it’s a wonder anybody on the show ever gets to say “I do.”

Brooks’ turn as marriage monster is in this show’s rich tradition, which will be on display via marathon rerun episodes airing all weekend, minus timeouts for a We prime-time Saturday sorbet of “Braxton Family Values” episodes and Sunday morning infomercials.

Erica Brooks wants you to know that the details made her do it.

“At the end of the day, when you put so much time and money into one day, you want it to be perfect,” Brooks, 25, said in a recent telephone interview during her lunch break from her job as an administrative assistant for the Louisiana Department of Corrections. “Everyone is probably a Bridezilla at one point because you just want things to go right.”

That Brooks became a Bridezilla at all is an unlikely journey.

“I was never one of those girls who was like, ‘Oh, I want this big, beautiful wedding,’” she said. “I never even thought about it until I met my fiancé.”

And then came the instigating input from popular culture, friends and family.

The “Bridezillas” application was “a joke,” she added, entered at the encouragement of would-be wedding-partiers.

“I never thought they would call and pick me for it,” she said. “I was definitely surprised.”

As was her groom, Wil, who didn’t even know she had applied.

“He laughed and told me, ‘Stop playin’,’ ” she said. “He’s very supportive. He’s a sweetheart. He said, ‘Whatever you want to do, I support you 110 percent.’ ”

For most spouses, it is a level of support that would be tested by the Sunday episode’s sequence documenting her bachelorette party, which is best summarized by this observation of the action ­­— “Whoa, Lord!” — by one of the attendees.

“I was going to have fun and probably get drunk and do whatever, and it just so happened that cameras were around and the world gets to see it,” Brooks said. “I’m sure people will say negative things about it, but I don’t care because I was having fun. I know I’m a good person, and I know I have a good heart.”

So much so that Brooks believes that there’s a near-philanthropic benefit bestowed by a show like “Bridezillas.”

“When the show called, I thought it would be a fun experience because it will show future brides all the stress that brides go through,” Brooks said. “To help the next person, I was all for it.

“You just get upset about things. You have a right to be when you’re a bride. You don’t get to relax and sit back when you’re planning your own wedding. People don’t understand that it’s one day you’ll remember for the rest of your life, so you want it to be perfect. You’re putting all this time and effort and money into one day. Only a bride can understand how a bride is feeling.”

Brooks said she feels great about the whole experience, cameras and all, because of the outcome.

“I had a beautiful wedding,” she said.

Dave Walker can be reached at dwalker@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3429. Read more TV coverage at NOLAa.com/tv. Follow him at twitter.com/davewalkertp.